In 1967, that famed theological scholar, John Lennon, gave us those famous words so many have come to believe when he sang, “All you need is love, love is all you need!”
It is an interesting thought, though. I wish he would have explained what he really meant by it. The Greeks had a number of words describing a number of different types of love and so Lennon’s words leave me a little more confused than enlightened.
The first word ‘eros’ is where we get the term erotic or sexual love. I personally think this might have been John’s thought since it was the middle of the sexual revolution. His thought might have been that if people have enough sex and drugs – that evil will melt away and life will be perfect. The second word for love is ‘phileo’ which is a word for friendship type love. Maybe John was thinking, if we all just became friends, all the world’s problems would be solved, because it never occurred to get along.
The last word we will look at for this discussion is the word ‘agape’. That is the word I’m sure never entered Mr. Lennon’s mind. It is a word of self-sacrifice that could only have been carried out by God, Himself. God was willing to be birthed on this planet, shared love with His friends, and died for mankind – only to be resurrected again to live in the hearts of His followers, and those willing to receive Him. Yes, John, love is all you need, as long it’s Jesus’ love!
